


Gallowdance

by Strangest_Hour



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alcohol, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Swearing, Vampire AU, mentions of gore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-08-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:55:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26168245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Strangest_Hour/pseuds/Strangest_Hour
Summary: You and Steve had bonded over the trauma you two had endured during the Summer of ‘86 at Starcourt. Mere months later, everyone else had gone back to normal. However, you had a hunch that everything wasn’t quite as normal as it seemed. It was up to you and Steve to conquer whatever sinister evil was at play this time.
Relationships: Steve Harrington/Reader, Steve Harrington/You
Kudos: 5





	Gallowdance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't be misled by the fact that Billy is in this fic. He is not portrayed in a good light in this fic at all. If you are a Billy stan, I would highly suggest reading something else.

The party was in full swing. You stood on the sidelines as you watched the crowd of sweaty bodies gyrating to ear splitting party music. Everyone else seemed to be having a good time, but you just wanted to go home. It was hard to enjoy yourself when you just felt so stiff. Even with the ungodly amount of alcohol polluting your bloodstream. You should’ve been as loose and happy as ever, ready to drag yourself onto the dance floor. But your mind held yourself back. It was difficult to act like everything was normal and to just let yourself go wild.

 _“Just act normal.”_

Steve had said,

_“Act like nothing happened here and that everything is fine.”_

Which is what you were doing. Just acting normal. Doing your normal thing. Going out late, hanging with friends, going out to parties. That was what you did. But that’s not what you do now. You now lived in a state of constant fear. All you could do was follow Steve’s advice and hope that one day, things would go back to feeling normal. God, how you yearned for normalcy again.

“Hey, wanna come play this round of beer pong with me?”

The sound of Tina’s voice snapped you back into the present. How long were you zoned out for?

“Oh, no thanks. I’m already pretty trashed. I think I might go home. I don’t feel so good”

It wasn’t a complete lie. You were pretty over trying to pretend. At least for the night. The room was spinning and you just wanted to get the fuck out of there.

Tina pouted her lip in disappointment at your answer.

“Pretty please? Tommy and Carol are kicking my ass out there. Quincy passed out, so I need a new partner.”

Ugh, you really didn’t want to. And you had a sneaking suspicion that she wasn’t going to give you much of a choice.

“I’ll let you borrow my new Blondie tape for a week?”

Dammit.

“Fine.”

* * *

Suffice to say, you kicked Carol and Tommy’s ass at beer pong. You and Tina always did make a dynamite team. Tommy was being a sore loser about the whole debacle, drunkenly slurring about how the game was somehow rigged. All you could do was chuckle at the notion as you left the table. 

If you weren’t drunk before, you sure as hell were drunk now.

It was a challenge battling your way back through the mob of hammered people, trying to get to the other side. You could feel bile rising to the back of your throat as you quickly rushed outside to empty the contents of your stomach onto Tina’s lawn. It was going to rain tomorrow. Hopefully, mother nature was kind enough to clean it off the lawn for you.

You stumbled back inside to get your jacket and noticed that Cheryl’s jacket was gone. She was your ride home.

Shit.

By some miracle, you were able to find Tina again and ask her where the hell Cheryl was.

“She asked you if you still needed a ride home during beer pong, and you said no. Don’t you remember?”

You vaguely remember her coming up to you, asking you about something during beer pong. But you were too focused on the game to pay attention to what Cheryl was saying. And that was almost an hour ago. Cheryl was definitely long gone by now.

The only other option was to walk home. As everyone else there was either too drunk, or too unconscious.

You slipped on your jacket and slid your purse on your arm, heading out the door.

The cool breeze of the fall air brushed across your face as you trudged through the lawn. Being extra careful not to step on your pile of bile on the lawn. Or anyone else’s for that matter.

It was only a couple blocks home, but god did you hate walking home by yourself. You had done it many times before when you were too wasted to drive yourself home, and hated it every single time.

This time felt different, though. Maybe witnessing the world quite literally almost ending before your eyes had something to do with it. Demogorgons, mindflayers, and who knows what the hell else was out there. Well, they were supposedly all taken care of. You just couldn’t shake the feeling that something else sinister was going on right under your nose. There was no real justification for your theory. It was probably just the trauma that was keeping you on edge.

You heard the roar of an engine pulling up beside you.

“Hey there, dollface. Need a ride?”

Speaking of sinister things. 

“No thanks, I’m fine.” You said, not even looking in his direction.

“Oh, come on. It’s cold as hell outside. I won’t bite.”

“Billy, I said no thank you.” You stated sternly.

You despised the guy. Why wouldn’t he just leave you alone?

“You live just down the road from me, so it’s not even out of the way. Just hop in.”

You just ignored him as you continued walking down the sidewalk, his car slowly following you as he was obnoxiously pleading for you to get in.

“I could just drive right alongside you the whole way home. Make sure you’re safe and all.”

All he needed was a windowless van and the promise of candy to finish off his incessant bothering for you to get in his car.

“Fuck off, man! I’m just fine all by myself. I don’t need your help.”

Something in your gut made you uneasy about his offer. Or rather him being so adamant about you getting in his car. You felt more uncomfortable than usual around him.

“Whatever.” He spat out as he zoomed off.

A breath of relief left your lips as he left your sight. You weren’t sure, but there was definitely something telling you that being near him was a very bad idea. Maybe it was the alcohol giving you false signals. 

More than likely, it was because of the events that unfolded mere months ago. At Starcourt, you literally saw the mindflayer rip a hole in his chest. He should’ve been dead. Somehow, he emerged through the woods a few weeks later, and he was just peachy keene. Apart from some cuts and bruises.

His family had held a god damn memorial for him. Figuring his body had burned with the rest of Starcourt. When he came back, he was unofficially proclaimed zombie boy number 2: electric boogaloo. You didn’t feel that he even deserved that title. Will had been through hell and back. Had been missing for weeks, stuck in the upside down. Left to fend for himself before he even hit puberty to earn his title. That’s not even counting the PTSD that was going to follow him for the rest of his life.

Billy just had dumb luck. Fortunate enough to not have any major arteries shredded.

You and the party had tried every test possible to ensure he wasn’t flayed again, or somehow a demogorgon in disguise. The tests checked out, and he was fine. That still didn’t excuse the fact that he should have been dead. He could explain his injuries away until he was blue in the face. That didn’t change the fact that you knew what you saw.

Thinking about all that shit was the last thing you needed running through your mind while you were walking home alone. At the end of the street, you hung a left and took a shortcut through a grassy field. Admittedly, you hadn’t gone this way many times, so you were a little fuzzy on where you were going. Especially since you still had a decent amount of booze in your system. 

After navigating yourself around a little bit, you emerged on the other side of the field. Ending up at the abandoned warehouse.

You trekked around the warehouse to get to the other side. It felt like miles getting around the damn thing. When you finally got to the other side of it, you wished you hadn’t.

“Hey there.” Billy said as he leaned up against his car with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. 

Had he been following you?

You were planning on simply walking right past him, ignoring him completely. Though upon getting closer to him, you noticed a smear of blood on his chest.

“What happened to you?” You said, pointing to his chest.

He shrugged “Oh, this? Eh, I just killed someone earlier. Didn’t quite get all cleaned up.”

You rolled your eyes. Though something about his joke didn’t sit right with you.

He shook his head “I’m not kidding.”

“Oh, ha-ha. Very funny.”

His words sent a chill down your spine, and your heart started beating rapidly.

You could tell by his cold gaze that he was dead serious.

You turned around, and immediately started running. All you could do was run. You ran until you felt like your lungs were ready to explode. His admission had you almost completely sobered up in an instant, having you dart away like a track star.

Suddenly, there was an exploding pain that radiated from the back of your skull. Slowly but surely, your vision became flooded with darkness as you began to drift into unconsciousness.

* * *

Your eyelids started to flutter as you began to regain consciousness. Wherever you were, it had a piercing brightness above you, making it hard for you to open your eyes.

If you hadn’t known any better, you would’ve suspected that you had died. The dull pain encompassing your body told you otherwise.

God, how your body ached. It felt like you had been put through a damn blender.

As you began to slowly open your eyes, you recognized your surroundings. You were in a hospital.

Steve turned around and his eyes met yours.

“Hey!” He shouted out to the nurse in the hall “She’s up! Get someone in here!”

He then turned his attention back to you.

“Hey, how are you?”

He was incredibly grateful to see you awake after worrying about you for hours.

“Uh, I don’t know.” You admitted. “I feel like I just got hit by a damn bus.”

You tried to sit up in the bed, and it hurt. Everything hurt. Your body screamed in pain any way you moved.

“What happened, y/n?” Steve inquired, worried as hell. “Did someone try to mug you?”

You shook your head “N-no. I mean, I don’t think so?”

To be honest, you were still a little fuzzy. Still coming to as you tried to shake off the last bit of grogginess that lingered in your body. You felt a sharp tear in your neck as you almost doubled over in staggering pain.

“Fucking hell!” You yelled out as you brought your hand to your neck. You felt mangled flesh against your palm. The sensation had you pull your hand away. Upon further inspection, you noted your palm was smeared with blood.

“Steve. Oh my god, Steve. What happened to me?” You were scared. Too afraid to even lift up your hospital blanket to see how bad the rest of your body was.

“Well, the Doctor said that you had a pretty serious gash on your neck. Bad enough that they gave you a few stitches. You also got busted up pretty bad on the back of your head. The rest of your body is just cuts and bruises.” He peeked out the door and then turned back to you as he lowered his voice “Oh, and if anyone asks, I’m your brother. That’s the only way I was able to even find that stuff out. Had to make sure you were okay and all.”

Your fingers trailed to the back of your head to feel how bad the injury actually was. A light press to the top of your skull was all it took for your head to explode in pain.

The familiar sensation had memories rushing back to you as you remembered bits and pieces from last night. At least, the last thing you saw before you felt that familiar pain. Or rather who you saw.

“Steve. Who found me?”

“There was some lady who found you this morning trying to find her dog. Stumbled across you and thought you were a mannequin. When she found out it was a body, she called the police. Thought you were dead.”

He sat on the edge of the bed, gently squeezing your knee.

“You-” He choked up a little “You almost were. Your body was almost completely drained of blood.”

What? 

“Steve, we need to get out of here. Now.”

His admission had shaken to your core. There was something in your heart that was desperately telling you that this wasn’t just some freak thing that happened. Darkness loomed over you after Starcourt. Following you wherever you went. You goddamn knew that everything wasn’t fixed and wrapped up in a neat little bow like everyone else had probably thought. You could feel it in your bones. You just needed to find a way to prove that you were right about all of this.

“Steve, I-”

A doctor came in and interrupted you.

“Hey there, y/n. How are we feeling today?”

You shrugged “I’ve definitely seen better days, Doc.” You took your lower lip into your mouth, debating in your mind what you should do.

“Can I leave?”

Your question took the Doctor by surprise.

“Well, I’m not so sure about that. We were having issues with some of our equipment earlier and weren’t able to get a clear read on all of your vitals.”

He cleared his throat.

“We can’t legally keep you here against your will. But, I would strongly advise you against leaving-”

“Then I want to leave.” You hated that you probably sounded rude, but you just needed to get the hell out of here. There were bigger things to worry about.

He sighed at your response. “Alright, then. Give me just a few moments, and I’ll write up your paperwork.”

The minute he exited the room, Steve glanced over at you.

“Are you sure you’re well enough to leave?”

“No. But I know I’m going to need to leave anyways. Some tylenol and hot coffee should get me back to better in no-time.” You said as you swung your legs to the side of the bed. Trying not to wince in pain at your injuries.

He was irritated at your total lack of care for yourself at that moment. But, he knew that all the begging in the world wouldn’t get you to stay in the hospital. You were stubborn like that. 

A few moments later, the doctor arrived with your paperwork.

“Here are your discharge papers. And I also wrote you a prescription for tramadol, for the pain. You should follow up with your primary care physician in 5 days.”

You took the papers. “Thank you.”

As soon as the doctor exited the room, you got up out of bed.

“Alright. Let’s roll.”

* * *

When you finally got back to Steve’s house, you both plopped down on the couch. It felt nice to be at his home again.

He had been kind enough to help you work through your trauma after what happened at Starcourt. He would invite you over for pizza. The two of you would pop in whatever rental he was able to swipe from the video store, and you both would shoot the shit for hours. It was so nice to feel like things were normal. Even if it was just for a little bit.

The two of you became incredibly close. Before all that crazy shit happened, you and Steve hardly even talked to one another. Maybe it was just trauma bonding bringing you together. Either way, you were grateful to become his friend. There was even one night you were feeling particularly upset, so he made you your favorite treat to cheer you up. Vanilla milkshake. No whipped cream, extra cherries.

Now, here you were again. Those good times felt like a distant memory, now. Felt like you were back at square one with your progress. Only this time instead of dealing with otherworldly creatures trying to take over the world, it was a person. Who tried to murder you specifically. All the milkshakes in the world couldn’t help with that.

“So…” He trailed off as he fidgeted with his thumbs. Normally, he wouldn’t force you to talk about anything you didn’t want to talk about.

“Steve, it’s okay.” You reassured him. “I knew I was going to have to talk to you about this. That’s why I wanted to get the hell out of the hospital.” You sighed, not looking forward to recounting your traumatic events. “So, it all started at Tina’s party…”

You spent the next few minutes explaining everything. Making extra sure to not leave out the part where Billy admitted to literally killing a person.

His jaw hung open at what you were saying. He heard your words as clear as day, he just couldn’t believe it.

“I- So… you- I mean…” He ran his fingers through his hair. You had quite literally rendered him speechless.

He shook his head, trying to gather his words. “So, he tried to kill you, and he killed someone else? We should go to the police. He doesn’t sound like some ‘creature’, he sounds like a fucking murderer. ”

You shook your head. “No, Steve. You don’t understand. He walked and talked like him. But it just… wasn’t him. And when I ran away, he didn’t run immediately. It was like he just wanted to watch me run. Like he got some sick thrill from seeing me being scared. But then he caught up to me almost instantly. It was like he had some superhuman running power or something. ”

He shook his head, not sure about what to say.

“Look, if he turns out just to be some murderous psychopath, then we can go to the police, and i’ll tell them everything. Promise.” You scooted closer to him, resting your hand on his shoulder. “But I can’t do that until I’m positive that the bastard is just a human, and not some creature of the night. Steve, you’re going to have to trust me. Please.”

He took a long pause. Thinking about what he was getting himself into.

“Fine.”


End file.
